E-Bike in Europe: SHIMANO STEPS Research on Micromobility

A recent survey conducted by SHIMANO STEPS, one of the e-bike market giants, revealed the different reasons that prompted many European citizens to choose an electric bike for their work commute.

Numerous researches have already indicated SHIMANO STEPS as one of the dominant players of the e-bike market, also including it in the list of manufacturing companies that will contribute significantly to market growth in the next decade, whose sales will reach over 130 million units by 2023 - according to Deloitte.

The survey, the results of which were released in April 2019, was conducted on over 12,000 citizens of 10 European countries, 24% of which has revealed to be willing to switch to an e-bike for the journey from home to work. Almost half of the population of the Netherlands (47%) would go to work by e-bike, the highest result in Europe, while 39% of people in Spain and 33% in Italy would be happy to adopt an e-bike for this commute.

This SHIMANO STEPS research reveals that throughout Europe, the main reasons for considering an e-bike for the work comute are: "to keep me fit” (34%) “to protect the environment" (30%) and "to save money"(30%). The reasons which, on the other hand, discourage the use of a pedal-assisted bicycle are: "the possibility of bad weather” (37%), “e-bikes are too expensive" (34%( and "arriving to work sweaty” (25%).

People in the UK are less likely to choose an electric bike to go to work, with only 11% willing to consider switching to an e bike, well below the European average. The "possibility of bad weather" (43%) and "arriving to work sweaty" (35%) proved to be the main reasons why the British public refused a potential switch to an e-bike.

We’re seeing huge growth in the e-bike market across Europe and this research highlights the likelihood of widespread adoption of e-bikes to commute to work in the future", said Jeroen Van Vulpen, Brand Manager at SHIMANO STEPS. "We know that there is already a strong cycling culture in specific countries, where those who've made the switch to an e-bike have found that bad weather is rarely an insurmountable problem and sweat is a thing of the past when you let the electric assistance take the strain. It’s really encouraging to see that across all markets, people are willing to switch to an e-bike to keep fit and protect the environment.”